Board Members

Joe Flanagan, President 

Joe has lived in Martin County since 1988 when he became the band director at South Fork High School and remained there for 12 years. After that, he was an administrator for 19 years at Dizzy Gillespie Charter School, Crystal Lake Elementary, Spectrum, Martin County Schools Transportation, and Anderson Middle School now retired after 39 years in education. He attended University of Florida, Troy State (AL), Georgia Southern, and Florida Atlantic receiving Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Ed Leadership certifications. Joe and his wife of over 40 years raised two sons who now live in Stuart and Orlando.

Austin Gregory Moody (Greg), Vice President
Greg was born in Kentucky in 1957 and was raised in Nashville, Tennessee. After graduating from Memphis State University of Law and receiving his Tennessee license to practice law in 1982, he joined the VA Regional Counsel in Nashville. In 1998, he and his family moved to Stuart, Florida and he worked as the hospital attorney at the VA Hospital in West Palm Beach. On January 2, 2014, he retired after 32 years of service as a government attorney for the VA Regional Counsel. Greg is married to Sharon Moody and they have two adult children and two grandchildren.
Greg previously served as a board member for the US Courthouse Credit Union in Nashville, Tennessee from 1996 to 1998. He has traveled to Peru as a team member on 13 medical mission campaigns for Latin American Missions.

Natalie Peraza, Treasurer
Natalie Peraza has worked with Martin County Healthy Start Coalition as a bilingual Community Health Educator since 2009. Prior to this, I was a Whole Child Advisor with Whole Child Connection for 2 years. Mrs. Peraza graduated from the City College of New York with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. Previous experience includes research in the sciences, case management in the foster care system, Youth work, as well as implementation, management and coordination of a nutrition grant. Natalie Peraza has over 25 years experience in the Human and Health Science services.

Alicia Stover, Program Coordinator
Alicia was born and raised in Peru, where she received her Bachelor in Translations from Ricardo Palma University. She moved to New York 33 years ago, and then to Florida  17 years ago, worked for Whole Child Connection and she currently works at Pinewood Elementary as the Parent Liaison and Volunteer Coordinator.  Alicia served for 3 years in the Head Start Policy Council, 5 years in the Family Selection Committee for Habitat for Humanity, volunteers as a translator for different non-form profits in Martin County and teaches Sunday school at her church.    Alicia has 2 adult children and lives with her husband Art in Stuart.  Alicia loves serving as a Board member for Children’s Emergency Resources as the Program Coordinator and also assists with grant writing.

Jennifer Bracken – RN, Secretary
Jennifer Bracken was a resident of Martin County from 1981-2022, but now lives in Okeechobee County. She is an RN and a Nationally Certified School Health Nurse who has worked for the Florida Department of Health in Martin County since 1997. She currently provides School Health Case Management services to students attending Jensen Beach High, Martin County High, Stuart Middle, Bessey Creek Elementary, Palm City Elementary and Citrus Grove Elementary schools. In the past she also worked in the Comprehensive School Health Program serving students at South Fork High School, acted as the Health Services Manager for the Martin County School District Head Start Program and as a medical/surgical nurse at Shands Hospital. She received her BS in Nursing from the University of Florida and her Masters of Public Health from the University of South Florida. She has been a CER Board member since 2006.

Birgit Ager

Birgit is a native Floridian, who grew up and started a family in South Florida with her husband, Jim. She and her family moved from Broward to Martin County in 2002. Birgit was an educator for approximately 36 years where she served as a teacher, assistant principal and principal in both Broward and Martin Counties. After retiring from education, Birgit has worked as a realtor with Coldwell Banker Realty for the last five years. 

During her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family, volunteering, traveling and gardening. Birgit is proud to serve on the CERI Board and to support the CERI mission, ‘to fund health services and access to health services to uninsured / underinsured Martin County children to enable their full participation in academic and social development’.

Myra White

Myra White has been working as a nurse for 33 years. She  received her RN degree at Perimeter College, Georgia State University. Her career included working at Grady Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Room in Atlanta (one of the largest public hospitals in the United States), as well as the Neonatal Intensive care Unit Level IV at Children’s Hospital of Georgia in Augusta, and many other career responsibilities in her time as a nurse. She began her career in School Health 14 years ago,
working in the clinic at Indiantown Middle School and eventually took a position at the Department of Health in Martin County in School health, where she furthered her education and obtained her diabetes care and education specialist certification as well as a bachelor’s degree in human services. She is currently working as a case manager for students with special acute and chronic conditions such as diabetes and epilepsy. Coordinating services between parents and physicians, making referrals for identified issues such as vision or hearing impairment, making necessary phone calls, emails, home, and doctor visits, locating resources to ensure the health care needs of the students are being met and that there is a clear channel of communication between the students, parents, health care provider and the school.

 Willie G. Gore
Willie Gore has been Martin County resident since 2006 and has retired with over 39 years in education. He was an administrator in Pinellas County where he previously resided and completed his career with the Martin County School District. He graduated from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in education and Nova Southeastern University where he received a Master’s in Educational Leadership. Willie and his wife Connie of 38 years reared two wonderful sons, Devin, and Willie III who live in Port St. Lucie and Orlando Florida, respectively. Willie is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and serves as the Chaplain. His fraternity is involved in community and youth endeavors focusing on youth programs. Willie continues to be an active member of the community and volunteers with numerous community organizations.

Curt Seely

My name is Curt Seeley. I am a retired educator. Before my retirement, I taught visually impaired students in the Martin County School District for 38 years. This was a job I loved. In fact, I loved it so much that I returned this year as the Program Specialist.

In my spare time I love to paint, workout and do yard work. I also like to travel. My greatest adventure so far was my trip to Alaska. I am in the process of planning a trip to Greece for the summer of 2024.

Susanna Deutsch

Susanna Deutsch was born in the Dominican Republic and at the age of seven moved to Florida. After graduating from Florida International University, she began serving the children and families of Broward County as a teacher, Literacy Coach, and then an administrator. Now, she proudly serves in Martin County as an administrator of  The Pinewood Elementary school. In the past 26 years, her experiences in various learning environments have taught her to respect and value diversity, learning abilities, and the resiliency of young people. She is the mother of two amazing young men who, alongside her husband, fill her heart with joy and love.